Equal Footing
by A. Zap
Summary: Most people that they knew at the Horde would say that Catra was Adora's rival because she was the only one who could keep up with Adora. Catra knows that it's really the other way around. Femslash February Day 13: Rivalry


No one in the squad could really keep up with Catra except for Adora.

Though if you asked anyone, they would say that Catra was the only one who could keep up with Adora.

Catra knew that wasn't quite true.

Catra was strong enough to rip apart some of the training bots with her bare hands. She was fast enough to avoid laser strikes and blows from the simulations, bots, and trainers. She was smart enough to figure out her opponents' weaknesses, use them against them, and strike at the best moment possible.

So Catra knew that she _could not be better_ than Adora.

Shadow Weaver had made it clear that _no one_ could be better than Adora. Their trainers also reflected her attitude, and once the other cadets had picked it up, they always made sure to help make Adora the best, even if it meant ganging up unfairly on Catra.

After Catra had been punished enough times, she found herself unconsciously making sure that she wasn't presenting herself as being better.

Of course, this meant that sometimes she was late or just flat out skipped training, which would earn her a scolding from Adora and usually a slight punishment from Shadow Weaver, but she didn't care. It was always better than what she'd receive if she bested Adora at anything.

To be fair, Adora did push herself to try to be the best. She trained more than anyone, studied more than anyone. Her straight-forward nature also endeared her to the other cadets easily. She felt a need to be absolutely perfect, in no small part due to Shadow Weaver's threats towards Catra.

But at the end of the day, she was only human. She had limits.

And Catra didn't quite know what she was (and knowing Shadow Weaver, she never would), but she knew that she wasn't the same as Adora, Kyle, Lonnie, or most of the other cadets and soldiers. The ears and tail were kind of a dead giveaway. Plus her other enhanced abilities.

Catra had different limits, and they were higher than Adora's. But she could not show any signs of this, because she would always be the one to face the consequences of being better, of Adora not fulfilling her potential.

Now things were different.

Catra stared across the battlefield with narrowed eyes at She-ra.

Adora had been her friend, her everything, her maybe. And for all intents and purposes, she had also been her rival, though Catra had always known somehow that that was only because everyone, including herself, had ensured it.

She-ra, on the other hand, was her real rival.

Her real enemy.

The one who truly could go toe-to-toe with her without either one of them holding back.

The real fighting started here.

Catra unleashed her claws.

Due to the circumstances and the added powers, they were finally on equal footing.

* * *

_AN: We've seen in canon that Catra can rip apart machinery bare handed (which Adora can't), seems to have speed and agility as her specialty, and has a better mind for strategy than Adora (Adora can come up with plans but they tend to be fairly simplistic and address more immediate concerns; once they get into them she doesn't usually have a contingency nor does she think of how to fully finish them off). So logically speaking, why wouldn't Catra have been the best?_

_From what we've seen, it's because she simply didn't put in the effort. And she didn't buy what the Horde was selling, but that's a different issue. Once she started applying herself, Catra proved herself to be more than capable and fierce._

_So it stands to reason, given Shadow Weaver's threats towards Catra, that she made sure that Adora would be the best, even if only subconsciously._

_Because if you think about it, Catra is more than able to go against She-ra, who's pretty much a goddess on Etheria and who enhances all of Adora's natural abilities. Catra can fight her pretty easily, so why wouldn't she have been unable to beat Adora? Especially since it would upset Catra to the point of crying when Adora would win and everyone supported her more than Catra. It made her feel bad, but it was necessary to survive._

_It kind of sucks but then again, that seems to be the dark side of Adora and Catra's friendship while in the Horde._


End file.
